A six-colour Rapida 106 with coating tower and delivery extension has been in operation at DruckArt for a year now (1)

The DruckArt company building in Kaufering, Upper Bavaria, is modern and designed according to feng shui principles (8)As soon as you enter the foyer of DruckArt in Kaufering in southern Germany, it becomes clear that this is a very special company in the graphic arts industry. The entrance area is designed according to feng shui rules – water, plants and lots of art provide a feel-good factor and create the vibrant centre point between the administration and the pressroom.

This flair continues in the print products of the company, which has been part of the Geiselberger Group since 2012. DruckArt mainly produces secondary packaging for the textile, fashion and cosmetics industries – from the smallest run to millions of copies with the highest level of finishing. Sometimes it is with small works of art that the brands present themselves. Site manager Andreas Seitz puts it this way: "Our work begins where most others stop," whether with regard to small print runs, the high proportion of finishing or the proportion of manual work.

Happy with the new technology (from left to right): printer Dennis Gollent, Gavin Elflein from Koenig & Bauer Germany, Andreas Seitz, site manager of the Geiselberger Group, and production manager Florian Schöck (2)

Use from lightweight stock to thick cardboard

DruckArt has a modern finishing die-cutter for effective finishes (4)A Rapida 106 by Koenig & Bauer has been in production in the company's pressroom for a year now. With the six-colour press, which has an additional coating unit, DruckArt has expanded its product portfolio in terms of both format and the range of substrates that can be processed.

The Rapida 106 also brought medium-format sheetfed offset printing to the company. Previously, production was only in half format. The product portfolio has been expanded significantly by the format enlargement. In addition, the significantly more productive press increases capacity. It is so universally equipped that it can process both thin substrates such as 40 g/m2 patient package inserts and 800 g/m2 cardboard.

The technology of the Rapida 106 already convinced the DruckArt experts in initial presentations. It is characterised by high performance and versatility. The DriveTronic feeder and the sidelay-free infeed (DriveTronic SIS) also offer significant advantages when processing a wide range of substrates – from the elimination of manual adjustments to gentle, jerk-free pile Lifting.

High print quality and short makeready times

Small is beautiful: depending on box size and processing, production is also carried out in significantly smaller formats (3)The press is quickly inked up, and the various measuring systems ensure constant printing results. The measurement technology with QualiTronic ColorControl and LiveView regularly impresses customers who come to the Rapida for final adjustments. Production manager Florian Schöck is also very impressed by the printing of complicated colour areas: "The Rapida 106 is perfect for this. Colour areas are excellent on the substrates used."

On account of the not inconsiderable customer base of startups from all industries, the print run is in the low range and sometimes only comprises 100 to a maximum of 5,000 sheets. This means that maximum printing performance plays a lesser role. On the other hand, short makeready times are essential. This means that DruckArt attaches great importance to fast washing and fast ink changes, for production frequently is carried out with up to six special colours, followed by four-colour printing again. Gold and silver colours are in high demand. The automatic shutdown of inking units that are not needed significantly simplifies the necessary changeover processes. There is no need to apply idling paste and wash it off again. On the other hand, the printing time increases. When the inside of folding boxes has to be printed, the first units can also be used for powdering.

High-quality finishing and packaging for cosmetic products – often in small quantities – are one of DruckArt's main production areas (6)

High-quality finishing – exactly according to your wishes

Despite exceptional products and high costs for finishing, DruckArt's employees make sure that even with tight budgets, the wishes of their customers are fulfilled down to the smallest detail. In the case of complex folding boxes, they check exactly which of the cost-intensive manual work processes can be implemented by machine.

This begins with coating. Everything that is possible is coated in an inline process with the coating tower of the Rapida 106: In addition to surface and pattern coatings with different dispersion varnishes, soft-touch and drip-off effects are also created. Quick anilox roller changes also allow different coating thicknesses to be applied. Hot embossing and hologram foils as well as cellophane wrappings also ensure an elegant appearance for the brands in question.

Some labels from the fields of natural cosmetics and fashion also attach importance to the use of vegan products. For this purpose, DruckArt provides proof that the inks, varnishes, adhesives and all other necessary aids that are used have no animal-based components.

The production of patient package inserts is the second important pillar of DruckArt's Business (7)

Fully integrated packaging production

Within the Geiselberger Group, DruckArt has developed into a specialist company for refined print products and the production of patient package inserts. From consulting to design, printing, finishing, processing and packaging, all processes take place under one roof. This ensures short routes, fast reaction times and high added value. On a production area of over 5,000 m2, 50 employees work in two shifts, and if necessary also in three. Five young people are trained in the company as office clerks, media designers, media engineers for printing, as well as packaging engineers.